Photo Credit: APThe Tea Party movement is showing signs of a resurgence following the revelation that the IRS targeted groups and other politically conservative organizations for the past several years.
A recent poll shows Americans have a more favorable opinion of the less-government, anti-tax groups. And one of the biggest groups in the grassroots movement told FoxNews.com this weekend that fundraising and donations have increased since news of the IRS targeting broke earlier this month.
However, one of the biggest remaining questions is whether the Tea Party can take the momentum in the 2014 elections.
The movement started in 2009 as a reaction to the federal government’s multibillion-dollar bank bailouts in the recession and played a major role in the 2010 midterm elections by backing conservative candidates who helped Republicans take control of the House. However, critics during the 2012 election cycle repeatedly argued the movement had become less relevant.
“We’re definitely seeing a spike in both interest and contributions,” Sal Russo, co-founder of the California-based Tea Party Express, told Fox on Saturday.
https://joemiller.us/wp-content/uploads/logotext.png00Joe Millerhttps://joemiller.us/wp-content/uploads/logotext.pngJoe Miller2013-05-27 03:37:192016-04-11 11:20:18Tea Party Gets a Bump After Being Targeted by IRS
Photo Credit: T.J. KirkpatrickCongressional Republicans, not resting with the Internal Revenue Service scandal, are moving to broaden the matter to an array of tax malfeasances and “intimidation tactics” they hope will ensnare the White House.
Republican charges range from clearly questionable actions to seemingly specious allegations, and they grow by the day. On Friday, lawmakers sought to tie the I.R.S. matter to the carrying out of President Obama’s health care law, which will rely heavily on the agency. Whether they succeed holds significant ramifications for Mr. Obama, who will soon know if he is dealing with a late spring thunderstorm that may soon blow over or a consuming squall that will leave lasting damage.
Representative Dave Camp, Republican of Michigan, the usually mild-mannered chairman of the House Ways and Means Committee, set the tone Friday at Congress’s first hearing on the targeting of conservative groups by the I.R.S., laying out details, from the alleged threatening of donors to conservative nonprofit groups to the leaking of confidential I.R.S. documents.
In that context, he said, the screening of Tea Party groups for special scrutiny was not the scandal itself but “just the latest example of a culture of cover-ups — and political intimidation — in this administration.”
“It seems like the truth is hidden from the American people just long enough to make it through an election,” Mr. Camp said.
Photo Credit: GettyAn activist with a tea party organization tore into the media in attendance at a Capitol Hill news conference Thursday, blaming the media in part for the recent Obama administration scandals because they weren’t tougher on the president.
“I want all of you to ask the question to yourself, what did you do to help create this environment where the IRS, an agent of government, can operate with such impunity?” Niger Innis, the chief strategist of TheTeaParty.net, said during a press conference with lawmakers about the IRS’ targeting of conservative groups.
Innis said today’s political environment is different than during Watergate because “40 years ago the press actually had an adversarial relationship with the chief executive, Dick Nixon.”
Innis, who is also a spokesman for the Congress on Racial Equality and son of legendary civil rights leader Roy Innis, said things have changed since those days.
Photo Credit: FacebookThe Internal Revenue Service wrote to the Richmond Tea Party last year demanding to know the names of all its financial donors and volunteers, as part of a 55-question inquisition into its application for tax-exempt status, MailOnline has learned.
The agency wanted to know ‘the names of the donors, contributors, and grantors’ for every year ‘from inception to the present.’
It also demanded ‘the amounts of each of the donations, contributions, and grants and the dates you received them.’
‘How did you use these donations, contributions, and grants?’ the IRS asked. ‘Provide the details.’
And in addition to the names of board members, officers and employees, the nation’s taxing authorities insisted on knowing the names of everyone who helped the Richmond Tea Party without compensation. ‘Please identify your volunteers,’ the January 9, 2012 letter from the IRS read.
The agency also required the Virginia conservative group to provide copies of sections of its website that only its members can access.
https://joemiller.us/wp-content/uploads/logotext.png00Joe Millerhttps://joemiller.us/wp-content/uploads/logotext.pngJoe Miller2013-05-13 23:16:152016-04-11 11:21:22Revealed: The 55 Questions the IRS Asked One Tea Party Group – Including Demands for Names of All Its Donors and Volunteers
Photo Credit: APTea party groups’ allegations that the IRS has long been targeting them for their political beliefs were recently confirmed by an apology from the IRS. The scandal gained traction as congressional leaders began efforts to hold the IRS accountable and understand the depths of the federal government’s politically-motivated abuses of power.
Yet given the history of such abuses, the problem may extend further than the IRS, and require a “government-wide” probe across several agencies, as Senate [Minority] Leader Mitch McConnell (R-KY) has suggested.
The issue was initially believed to only involve groups with “Tea Party” or “patriots” in their names being singled out for greater scrutiny by the IRS, but recent admissions reveal that a wide range of conservative and constitution-oriented groups were singled out by the federal government. Most media outlets have focused on 2012 as the year the abuses occurred, but one prominent Tea Party-initiated organization, True the Vote, began to run into alleged federal government abuses in 2010–from a variety of agencies.
True the Vote, a Houston-based nonprofit which focuses on election integrity issues, was formed by Catherine Engelbrecht and her King Street Patriots Tea Party group. True the Vote applied to the IRS for their 501(c3) non-profit status in July 2010, and almost immediately their problems began.
Within two years, multiple federal agencies, along with an EPA-affiliated Texas state agency, began auditing True the Vote and its founders, visiting their group, their businesses, and asking questions of people who knew them. The IRS was not the only governmental agency involved.
In the final part of his interview with The Daily Caller’s Ginni Thomas, political commentator and satirist Evan Sayet said the tea party is part of a larger movement that is developing in response to media corruption and political maneuvering.
“I do think that it’s going to be more than talk, you know?” Sayet said. “What do you do when you seek redress via, let’s say, the media, and the media is corrupt? What do you do when you seek redress through the courts, and the courts have activists who don’t care about the law and the Constitution? What do you do when you seek redress through the electoral process, but all of the seats are gerrymandered? What do you do? … There is going to be a progression of actions, I think. We saw that start with the tea party.”
https://joemiller.us/wp-content/uploads/logotext.png00Joe Millerhttps://joemiller.us/wp-content/uploads/logotext.pngJoe Miller2013-04-07 02:38:272013-04-07 02:38:27Satirist Evan Sayet: Media Corruption will Prompt Public Backlash
On Sunday, June 26, 2011, the world premiere of the first episode of the new Colony Bay Entertainment series: “Courage, New Hampshire” took place in Monrovia, CA.
The Inspiration channel, which ranks among the fastest growing basic cable networks in America with a broadcast reach of up to 73 million viewers, recently announced it will broadcast “Courage, New Hampshire” nationally on Memorial Day 2013.
“We are very excited to make this announcement,” said INSP Senior VP of programming, Doug Butts. “Original scripted dramas are going to play a significant role in INSP’s future programming strategy. Courage, New Hampshire is an outstanding addition to our already strong programming line-up.”
“With the overwhelming success of period shows like Downton Abbey, Pride and Prejudice, North & South, etc., audiences will find Courage, New Hampshire equally compelling,” Butts said. “Courage, New Hampshire fits perfectly with the INSP brand.”
Visionary, screenplay writer, director, actor and co-producer James Patrick Riley noted, “I am looking forward to seeing INSP deliver a large audience. I am hoping that we will eventually go into regular production, with many more seasons to come. Likewise, it would be great to establish ourselves in mainstream media, because we have done something really special here. To have created an American 18th century serial episodic period drama is something really phenomenal. Not even any of the major networks have attempted that.”
When asked about the future of Courage, Colony Bay Entertainment executive and Courage co-producer Jonathan Wilson replied, “Currently, we are in the pre-planning stages for a season two, so stay tuned. We can’t say a whole lot about the number of episodes, but we’re pretty sure about one thing…There will be more romance.”
In episode one-“The Travail of Sarah Pine”- The viewer visits the frontier township of Courage, located in western New Hampshire. When British soldiers arrive in search of deserters their quarry escapes, but one of them catches the eye of Justice of the Peace Silas Rhodes and a dramatic, gripping trail ensues.
Dramatic, believable acting by an outstanding cast of talented actors (featuring Alexandra Oliver as Sarah Pine, Nathan Kershaw as British deserter Bob Wheedle, James Patrick Riley as tavern keeper and Justice of the Peace Silas Rhodes and Basil Hoffman as royal solicitor Simeon Trapp) propel the show.
In episode two-“The Sons of Liberty”- Justice Rhodes travels to Portsmouth for the execution of two notorious criminals. Royal Governor Wentworth details how ruling New England will require a “light hand”, and the Township of Courage greets the arrival of a new pastor.
Performances by Donal Thomas-Cappello as the deceptively sinister Reverend Silence Laud, Isabelle Gardo as the desirable Abby Lamb, Greg Martin as the burglar and Joe Massingill as the counterfeiter make this episode delightful and compelling. Mike Gallagher appears as a jovial barkeep and Andrew Breitbart plays the part of the High Sherriff.
In episode three-“A Snake in the Garden”- Governor Wentworth begins enforcement of the unwelcomed, unpopular white pine act. The “Reverend” Silence Laud makes romantic advances on the lovely Miss Lamb, and the sons of liberty are the only one who stands between royal imprisonment and a farmer’s freedom.
Donal Thomas-Cappello reprises his role as Reverend Laud, and Isabelle Gardo returns as Abby Lamb. Jonathan Salisbury as Noah Pine, Allen Marsh as Abraham Fox and Patrick Finerty as William Bramley further drive the drama of this episode.
In episode four-“Ambition”- Reverend Laud becomes ensnared in his own deceit while Governor Wentworth takes steps towards enforcement of royal justice upon Courage. While at a training day in Portsmouth the neighboring towns’ gathered militias are pushed by Courage townsmen to ponder the question: “are you with us?”
The circle of drama continues as the Sons of Liberty stand against corrupt British rule.
The production quality is top notch, featuring crisp photography and well-paced editing that tells the story while avoiding the pitfalls of encryption or dragging scenes. The beautiful music is consistently appropriate. The compelling screenplay employs clever, time appropriate dialogue which evokes a wide range of emotions while conveying time tested morals.
Watch the ISPN trailer here:
James Patrick Riley and Jonathan Wilson, co-founders of Colony Bay and the driving force behind the success of Courage are to be congratulated for their fine production. It is highly recommended and can be enjoyed by children of all ages.
To obtain a DVD copy of Courage, go here:
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Michael Fell is a former MCA recording artist from the seminal punk rock era who toured America from coast to coast. Today, he’s a leading voice in the L.A. Tea Party movement, active since the February 2009 inception. Mr. Fell currently chairs the Westwood Tea Party, is a founding member of the L.A. Metro Tea Party Coalition, serves as the Vice Chairman of the Westside Republicans Club in L.A. CA, and is an elected Republican delegate to the L.A. 47th AD Central Committee. He’s been Campaign Manager for a primary winning Congressional candidate, as well as Santa Monica and L.A. City Council candidates. Mr. Fell is a contributing writer for https://conservativedailynews.com/, https://rightwingnews.com/, https://www.hollywoodrepublican.net/, https://beforeitsnews.com, https://www.redcounty.com/, https://www.uspatriotpac.com and, https://westsiderepublicans.com/. His opinions on today’s news events and political climate can be found on his blog: https://mjfellright.wordpress.com/
https://joemiller.us/wp-content/uploads/logotext.png00Joe Millerhttps://joemiller.us/wp-content/uploads/logotext.pngJoe Miller2013-03-29 01:44:052013-03-29 01:44:05Courage Is No Longer Just a Word (+video)
In a sign of how active Sarah Palin intends to be in influencing the 2014 elections, SarahPAC, Sarah Palin’s Political Action Committee, released a video on Wednesday meant to ignite independents, conservatives, and Tea Partiers for the 2014 midterm elections. These voters propelled Republican candidates in the historic 2010 midterm elections that saw Republicans take back the House of Representatives on the backs of Tea Party voters.
Titled “Loaded for Bear,” the video shows footage and headlines from mainstream media outlets like Politico referring to Palin as a “kingmaker” and conservative outlets like Fox News acknowledging how successfully Palin has used her star-power to help elect conservative candidates to office.
The video also features Sen. Ted Cruz (R-TX) praising Palin for her fearlessness and being instrumental in electing senators such as Marco Rubio, Rand Paul, Pat Toomey, Jeff Flake, Deb Fischer, Cruz and governors like Nikki Haley of South Carolina.
In 2012, former South Carolina Senator and current president of the Heritage Foundation Jim DeMint said Palin’s endorsement “has more influence in primaries than any other endorsement right now.”
“Sarah Palin picks winners,” Cruz says in the video.
https://joemiller.us/wp-content/uploads/logotext.png00Joe Millerhttps://joemiller.us/wp-content/uploads/logotext.pngJoe Miller2013-03-28 01:12:242013-03-28 01:12:24Palin Reloads For 2014 Elections With SarahPac Video
After the Republican National Committee released its “autopsy” report highlighting the path forward for the GOP on Monday, conservatives blasted the RNC for proposing changes they feel would blunt the ability of grassroots conservatives to beat establishment candidates at the presidential level.
The report proposes shortening the primary calendar for the next presidential cycle and holding a series of regional primaries that would be a series of “super primaries.” Critics claim it is heavy on process, metrics, and outreach to celebrities and minorities while being short on conservative substance—which, they fear, would ensure more Mitt Romneys are nominated over insurgent Tea Party and grassroots candidates like Ted Cruz.
Brent Bozell, chairman of ForAmerica, said there was not much that excited him about the report and accused the Republican establishment of being “obsessed with identifying problems and solutions from the top-down instead of from the bottom-up.”
“It’s the exact same thing as (GOP strategist) Karl Rove saying they’re going to pick candidates. That ensures that establishment candidates are the only ones with a chance,” Bozell told The Hill.
Jenny Beth Martin of Tea Party Patriots said the RNC fails to understand that Republicans lost because they “failed to promote our principles,” and the party does not need to wait on the “RNC to promote our winning principles at places like CPAC, and across the country.”
The establishment Republican Party leaders and their sometime abettors in the establishment media would like to forget that the Tea Party uprising of 2009 and 2010 was as much a revolt against the entrenched GOP leadership as it was a rebellion against Barack Obama and his liberal agenda.
Tea Partiers and grassroots conservatives frustrated by the slow pace of change in the GOP or its tendency to equate change with lurching to the left were therefore delighted when former Alaska Governor Sarah Palin took to the stage at CPAC and delivered a stinging rebuke to the advocates of big government Republicanism and the abandonment of the Republican Party’s support for traditional marriage and other elements of the traditional values agenda.
Most of the media coverage of Sarah Palin’s CPAC speech centered on her humorous tweaking of Karl Rove and America’s nanny-in-chief New York Mayor Michael Bloomberg. However, those who stop there in their analysis of Governor Palin’s remarks are missing the most important element of her CPAC speech: her celebration of the populist elements of the Tea Party agenda and a call for the Republican Party to embrace them.
In the first of two key points in the speech, Palin invoked the wisdom of Lady Margaret Thatcher to remind Republicans that the way forward after the 2012 election disaster was not to be more like the Democrats, saying, “The permanent political class is in permanent political mode so where do we go from here? One of my idols, Lady Margaret Thatcher, she offered this advice after her party lost at the polls. She told fellow conservatives not to get lost in abstract debates and green-eye-shade accounting. Mrs. Thatcher advised conservatives to focus their concerns first and foremost on the people. She said; look at every problem from the grassroots, not from the top down. She also cautioned Conservatives not to go wobbly on their beliefs…”
Governor Palin also gave a good analysis of the disaster Obamanomics has wreaked upon America’s middle class. These facts are important, and should get more media coverage whenever the White House says the economy is improving and the recession is over — but pointing them out is not unique to Sarah Palin. What is unique and important is her analysis of how they relate to the growth of government and the growing divide between Washington and “heartland country” as Palin calls it.
https://joemiller.us/wp-content/uploads/logotext.png00Joe Millerhttps://joemiller.us/wp-content/uploads/logotext.pngJoe Miller2013-03-20 01:37:402013-03-20 01:37:40Palin Is Right: To Win, GOP Must Adopt Tea Party Populism
